National Internet Day

Mark your calendars on October 29th for this year’s National Internet Day, a time to celebrate the world wide web and the vital role it plays in the modern-day age of humanity.

Where would we be without the portable wells of our collective information? Our smart devices let us hold the entirety of the internet in the palms of our hands, connecting us in a way that people less than a century ago would not have thought possible. We can share everything from knowledge to entertainment, with news and memes available to us every day, 24/7.

Of course, the high-tech instant access to the internet we’ve all integrated into our lives and society comes from humble beginnings. According to an article from nationaltoday.com, online messaging started 52 years ago, when “Charley Kline, a young grad student on the UCLA campus attempt[ed] to send the first internet message to his colleague, Bill Duvall, at Stanford.”

The two students used the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network, or ARPANET, to send the word “LOGIN” to each other. The early network, which connected a grand total of four computer terminals, crashed after the letters L and O were sent. Kline managed to reboot the system without too much trouble, and the rest of the word was sent successfully.

There are plenty of ways to celebrate National Internet Day, like taking the time to appreciate a bit of history by visiting the first ever website, still up and running at http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html. It may lack the organization, colors, and graphics we expect from beginner websites today, but with nothing like it having been made before, this website was revolutionary for its time. It stands as the foundation by which the customizable, eye-catching, easy to make websites of today built on.

Enjoy National Internet Day with the simpler pleasures of the world wide web. Indulge in cat videos, take abstract personality quizzes, make memes of your own! Or, take a break from the internet for the day. Take a small vacation from your screens just to live life without them for a moment. It is in the absence of luxury that we can truly appreciate it.

However you celebrate this National Internet Day, remember to appreciate how far our technology has come. As National Today says, “We started with chat rooms, email programs, and some basic websites and wound up in the midst of a cultural revolution. Today we’ve got mail — along with access to infinite possibilities — in our back pockets.”

Capitol Tech offers many degrees and opportunities revolving around the management of technology, where one can learn all about the inner workings of the internet and all that is required to maintain and improve it. To learn more about these programs, visit captechu.edu and peruse the various courses and degrees offered. Many courses are available both on campus and online. For more information, contact admissions@captechu.edu.